NIMR-Mbeya has launched an annual seed grant for junior scientists from Mbeya and Tukuyu centers to apply internally to fund their own research ideas. This is aimed at cultivating, building and bringing up our own junior researchers so that after this grant, they will have acquired additional grant application and scientific skills as a learning curve that will boost them to apply for more internal and external funding.NIMR-Mbeya has launched an annual seed grant for junior scientists from Mbeya and Tukuyu centers to apply internally to fund their own research ideas. This is aimed at cultivating, building and bringing up our own junior researchers so that after this grant, they will have acquired additional grant application and scientific skills as a learning curve that will boost them to apply for more internal and external funding.
Funds will be provided competitively by submitting project proposals. Up to eight projects might be funded. For each project, a maximum budget of 4,000,000Tsh is available (budgets are subject to review by the committee)
Eligible Candidates:
- Junior scientists
- Bachelor/Masters degree
- Principal Investigator (PI) of not more than 2 studies
- PI of not more than $50,000 grant funding
- PI who is not a grant applicant of a project
- Participation in NIMR-MMRC scientific meetings and/or NIMR conferences
- Round one awardees are not eligible to apply
- MUST be a NIMR-Mbeya (MMRC or Tukuyu) staff
Project duration:
A project must be completed within the funding period (i.e. by February 2019- January 2021).
Available funds per project:
Between 3-4 million Tanzanian shillings are available per project (budgets subject to review by the committee). Each application has to be accompanied by a budget plan. Only applications with a budget request plan of not more that Tsh 4 million will be considered. All recipients of the funds will receive the funds in 2 installments and will be internally audited by NIMR-MMRC’s accounts department to ensure that the requested funds are used as established in study related budget and not otherwise.
Topics:
Any project related to health that contributes to scientific development and/or to policy, addressing national and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Guidelines:
- Applicant should guarantee that a senior scientist would supervise the work. A senior scientist cannot support more than 2 applications.
- Proposals must be written in English
- The project team may comprise of not more than 5 investigators from any organization other than NIMR-MMRC and Tukuyu
- If funded, submission of study approval from the Mbeya Medical Research and Ethics Committee (MMREC)
- Applicants are expected to submit quarterly study progress reports to GMC
- Publication is compulsory up to 1 year after the project completion
- Successful applicants MUST present their work in one local or international platform. GMC will support travelling logistics for one local conference. For international conferences: applicants are encouraged to look for scholarships.
- Applicant should consent to having his/her work published on NIMR- MMRC’s homepage, Facebook and Twitter pages
- Applicants will have a contractual obligation to recognize funding from NIMR-MMRC in all dissemination activities and publications. The acronym to be used is NIMR-Mbeya Medical Research Center (NIMR-MMRC)
Timeline:
- 18th October 2019: Opening of the seed-grant scheme
- 18th November 2019: Project proposals submission deadline
- 13th December 2018: Reviewers deadline
- 10th January 2019: Selection and responses to applicants
- 1st February 2020 to 31st January 2021: Project duration
Reporting:
Successful applicants are expected to submit quarterly progress and financial reports. In addition,a financial and progress report will have to be submitted prior to obtaining the 2nd installment. A detailed report, which will also include a final financial report is expected to be submitted at the completion of the study.
Required documents for application:
- Application form (Linked here)
- Budget and budget justification form (Linked here)
- Lead applicant and other investigator CV and GCP/GCLP certificates
- Supervisor’s commitment form (Linked here)
Applications lacking any of these documents will not be subjected to the application process.
Selection Criteria:
Only projects fulfilling the eligibility criteria and the formal requirements will be eligible for review.
Two reviewers will review each proposal. Proposals will be ranked according to criteria listed below and reviewer’s recommendations.
Reviewers cannot review proposals that they plan to supervise.
The following criteria will be applied:
- Quality and innovation of the proposed work
- Feasibility of the proposed research (with respect to its contribution to generation of evidence and policy)
- Suitability of the chosen methods
- Likelihood of publication of the results
Complete proposals may be submitted no later than 18th November via email to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For further inquiries please contacThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Related resources:
EQUATOR Network: Reporting guidelines for main study types http://www.equator- network.org/
How to Read a Paper: The Basics of Evidence-Based Medicine, 5th Edition. Trisha Greenhalgh. ISBN: 978-1-118-80096-6. Apr 2014, BMJ Books. 284 pages
UpToDate Donations Program: https://www.uptodate.com/home/uptodate-donations- program
